By Will Dunham WASHINGTON, Jan 22 (Reuters) - The dwarf planet Ceres, one of the most intriguing objects in the solar system, is gushing water vapor from its unusual ice-covered surface, scientists said on Wednesday in a finding that raises the question of whether it might be hospitable to life. Using the European Space Agency's Herschel infrared space telescope, researchers spotted plumes of water vapor periodically spewing from Ceres, the...

By Will Dunham WASHINGTON, Jan 22 (Reuters) - The dwarf planet Ceres, one of the most intriguing objects in the solar system, is gushing water vapor from its unusual ice-covered surface, scientists said on Wednesday in a finding that raises the question of whether it might be hospitable to life. Using the European Space Agency's Herschel infrared space telescope, researchers spotted plumes of water vapor periodically spewing from Ceres, the...

A newly discovered dwarf planet in the solar system has been given a Hawaiian name: Haumea (how-MAY'-ah), after the Hawaiian goddess of earth and fertility. Haumea's name was approved Wednesday by the International Astronomical Union in Paris. It is the solar system's fifth dwarf planet, in the same category and region as Pluto. Haumea is shaped like an elongated egg. Astronomers think its shape comes from its rapid rotation. Haumea was discovered in 2005. The other...

A newly discovered dwarf planet in the solar system has been given a Hawaiian name: Haumea (how-MAY'-ah), after the Hawaiian goddess of earth and fertility. Haumea's name was approved Wednesday by the International Astronomical Union in Paris. It is the solar system's fifth dwarf planet, in the same category and region as Pluto. Haumea is shaped like an elongated egg. Astronomers think its shape comes from its rapid rotation. Haumea was discovered in 2005. The other...

Lucy Lawless, take heart. Astronomers may have given a snub to the TV actress who starred in "Xena: Warrior Princess," when they conferred a new name on a Pluto-sized world they'd previously nicknamed Xena. But the astronomer who christened the dwarf planet--now officially called Eris--said Thursday that he purposely named the world and its moon after deities of discord and lawlessness. Yes, with Lawless the actress in mind. And here we all thought astronomers were a nerdy...

NASA this weekend is set to launch a spacecraft that will journey to the asteroid belt that lies between Mars and Jupiter, a mission that involves a rendezvous with two of the solar system's largest asteroids. Seeking clues about the birth of the solar system, the Dawn spacecraft will first encounter Vesta, the smaller of the two bodies, four years from now. In 2015, it will meet up with Ceres, which carries the status of both asteroid and, like Pluto, dwarf planet.

NASA this weekend is set to launch a spacecraft that will journey to the asteroid belt that lies between Mars and Jupiter, a mission that involves a rendezvous with two of the solar system's largest asteroids. Seeking clues about the birth of the solar system, the Dawn spacecraft will first encounter Vesta, the smaller of the two bodies, four years from now. In 2015, it will meet up with Ceres, which carries the status of both asteroid and, like Pluto, dwarf planet.

His life was the stuff of legends. Clyde Tombaugh was a Midwestern farm kid who looked into the night sky and found another world. His discovery of the planet Pluto in 1930 made him an overnight celebrity. But in his hometown of Streator, amid the cornfields and hog farms of the rural Midwest, people rarely talked about the famed astronomer who grew up northwest of town. And Tombaugh -- a humble man who died in 1997 -- probably would have wanted it that way. Then,...

Astronomers tried to settle the debate over Pluto's status by changing the definition of "planet" and renaming Pluto a "dwarf planet." But critics say that only led to linguistic confusion. "We now have dwarf planets, which are in fact not planets. I consider this a linguistic catastrophe," Owen Gingerich, chairman of the official planet definition committee of the International Astronomical Union, told the British press. "I think the union is going to get a lot of flak...

Even in death, Jerry Ford did one more favor for the country he gave so much to. He died just at the moment when, with his country riven by a vicious and irrelevant war and American public culture filled with vulgarity, his memory could recall for us what America once was. The 38th president personified, in the very best sense, what it meant to be American. He was a big, handsome, warm man, and perhaps that helped him be as modest as he was. He was honest, honorable, loyal and,...

Those killjoy astronomers! In August, after much heated debate, the International Astronomical Union demoted Pluto from planet to "dwarf planet," just as EMI was releasing its new recording of Colin Matthews' addendum to Gustav Holst's popular suite "The Planets." But listeners shouldn't let this bit of incidental intelligence spoil their enjoyment of Matthews' kinetic and atmospheric evocation of Pluto, nor of any of the other heavenly bodies that share this CD. Conductor Simon Rattle's second recording...

Those killjoy astronomers! In August, after much heated debate, the International Astronomical Union demoted Pluto from planet to "dwarf planet," just as EMI was releasing its new recording of Colin Matthews' addendum to Gustav Holst's popular suite "The Planets." But listeners shouldn't let this bit of incidental intelligence spoil their enjoyment of Matthews' kinetic and atmospheric evocation of Pluto, nor of any of the other heavenly bodies that share this CD. Conductor Simon Rattle's second recording...

If it's curtains for Pluto as a planet, what does it mean for those who draw on its cosmic power to attract customers? Pete Angelos thought he was being clever when he decided months ago to name his soon-to-open, space-themed fast food restaurant Pluto's Original Beef & Hot Dogs. After first hearing of Thursday's demotion, he wasn't so sure anymore. "I knew they were trying to downsize it, but wow," he said, making "wow" sound like the more painful, and perhaps more...

Lucy Lawless, take heart. Astronomers may have given a snub to the TV actress who starred in "Xena: Warrior Princess," when they conferred a new name on a Pluto-sized world they'd previously nicknamed Xena. But the astronomer who christened the dwarf planet--now officially called Eris--said Thursday that he purposely named the world and its moon after deities of discord and lawlessness. Yes, with Lawless the actress in mind. And here we all thought astronomers were a nerdy...

Two weeks ago, there were nine planets. Last week, it seemed, there were 12. And now there are eight, as the world's astronomers on Thursday demoted Pluto, that beacon to underdogs at the solar system's outer frontier. Some 300 voting members of the International Astronomical Union agreed to expel little Pluto from the ranks of the planets, in a dramatic flip-flop from a committee's earlier recommendation that would have added three planets to the solar system's roster. The move...

Astronomers tried to settle the debate over Pluto's status by changing the definition of "planet" and renaming Pluto a "dwarf planet." But critics say that only led to linguistic confusion. "We now have dwarf planets, which are in fact not planets. I consider this a linguistic catastrophe," Owen Gingerich, chairman of the official planet definition committee of the International Astronomical Union, told the British press. "I think the union is going to get a lot of flak...

His life was the stuff of legends. Clyde Tombaugh was a Midwestern farm kid who looked into the night sky and found another world. His discovery of the planet Pluto in 1930 made him an overnight celebrity. But in his hometown of Streator, amid the cornfields and hog farms of the rural Midwest, people rarely talked about the famed astronomer who grew up northwest of town. And Tombaugh -- a humble man who died in 1997 -- probably would have wanted it that way. Then,...

If it's curtains for Pluto as a planet, what does it mean for those who draw on its cosmic power to attract customers? Pete Angelos thought he was being clever when he decided months ago to name his soon-to-open, space-themed fast food restaurant Pluto's Original Beef & Hot Dogs. After first hearing of Thursday's demotion, he wasn't so sure anymore. "I knew they were trying to downsize it, but wow," he said, making "wow" sound like the more painful, and perhaps more...